They could not qualify him and let him hit UFA (with a handshake deal to not go anywhere else) and then re-sign him at a different term. I believe Pittsburgh did that with Tyler Kennedy last year or the year before.

He's ageless in the way that Ray Whitney is. This team will have lots of money to spend. And why should he stay a Devil? I hate the Devils. I'd like to see a Czech connection, they've failed twice to give Plekanec his right hand man in Jagr.

Gionta is nothing like Elias, strong chance he'll be traded in the offseason and I bet the plan was to move him this year but fortunately things have gone very well in Hab land.

Calgary is what the Isles were under Milbury and what the Leafs were under JFJ... a bad team that wants to try for 8th.

I felt like we missed the boat getting a first with them last year with Cammy. We should not make the same mistake again and we should be going after their first hard. That club's owner is stupid enough to offer sheet away his first... we should exploit this. We've already made one trade with them, they're out of our conference... no reason not to see what we can get from them.

We should be trying to get first rounders from them because I think they're going to be bad for a while.

In a bizarre twist to an already unusual story, Sportsnet.ca has discovered that the Flames were not only in danger of losing 2013 first- and third-round draft picks as compensation if the Avs hadn’t matched the O’Reilly contract, but they also would likely have had to surrender the player before ever getting him in uniform. That’s because O’Reilly would have needed to clear waivers before joining the team’s roster.

What a major screw up by the Flames that could have been. The Flames could have lost their 1st and 3rd picks and then lost ROR on waivers. That would've been the funniest thing ever.

What a major screw up by the Flames that could have been. The Flames could have lost their 1st and 3rd picks and then lost ROR on waivers. That would've been the funniest thing ever.

There are some contradicting reports as to whether or not ROR would actually have had to clear waivers...either way it seems like a situation that the NHL didn't account for in the CBA. Would have been a strange (and possibily litigious) situation.